The present invention relates in general to health and beauty care apparatus, and more particularly to systems for cleaning and otherwise removing contaminants from melted paraffin as utilized in paraffin spas.
Paraffin spas are commonly used in the health and beauty areas for providing a therapeutic effect to a person""s hands or feet. A paraffin spa includes a container for heating paraffin, wax or other similar substances to a melting point of about 120xc2x0 F. The paraffin spa is of a size sufficient for bathing therein a person""s hand or foot. Special paraffins are commercially available that are colored and have aromatic scents and oils therein. The client simply immerses an extremity in the melted paraffin for a short period of time, and withdraws the extremity for allowing solidification of the paraffin to a warm pliable state. This procedure is continued until a few layers of warm paraffin coat the person""s extremity. The coating of paraffin remains warm and pliable due to the temperature of the client""s extremity. This treatment provides a soothing and pleasant sensation to the client, as well as a therapeutic effect for dry skin.
It can be appreciated that during successive uses of the paraffin bath, various particulate contaminants accumulate and remain in the paraffin material. These particulate contaminants generally settle to the bottom of the paraffin bath. Certain health considerations arise if the contaminants are not removed. Moreover, clients become hesitant to place their hands in a melted paraffin bath that has visible particulate matter therein. There are also concerns of passing bacteria from one client to another.
One technique for assuring that the client does not utilize the paraffin with contaminants therein is simply to periodically replace the entire bath of paraffin wax. The large chunk of paraffin, together with the contaminants, is simply removed from the spa and replaced with fresh paraffin. While this measure is effective, it is a costly procedure and the used paraffin must be disposed of in a proper manner. In accordance with another technique, the solidified paraffin is removed from the spa, together with the contaminants or residue that has settled to the bottom thereof. The particulate contaminants can then be scraped or otherwise removed from the chunk of paraffin and the remaining portion of the paraffin placed back in the spa container. In this procedure, the spa heater is activated for a short period of time to melt the paraffin sufficiently so that the solidified portion can be removed. Again, this is a time-consuming procedure, is only marginally effective, and results in a portion of the paraffin being discarded. This technique is only effective for removing particulate contaminants that are heavier than the paraffin, and that settle to the bottom of the spa container. Other particulate matter that is suspended in the paraffin thus remains when the solidified paraffin is returned to the spa container.
An important consideration in the use of heated paraffin is that if the material is to be reused, it should be substantially free of bacteria and other filterable particulate matter before reuse thereof. Even if the melted paraffin were to be poured through a filter medium and used thereafter, general purpose filters cannot remove the bacteria and other fine particulate matter. This presents an obvious health concern. Even if very fine filter mediums were to be used, they would quickly become clogged with the larger size particles, and such filters would have to be replaced frequently.
From the foregoing, it can be seen that a need exists for a new technique in which melted paraffin is easily filtered with a high efficiency, and returned to the spa container. Another need exists for a hot paraffin filter system which is fool proof and does not require a high degree of skill in the operation thereof. Yet another need exists for a paraffin filter system that is constructed so that the filter is easily replaceable, and the other parts of the system remain generally inaccessible to the user.
In accordance with the principles and concepts of the invention, there is disclosed a hot paraffin filtering system that overcomes the problems and disadvantages attendant with the prior art techniques.
In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, there is disclosed a hot paraffin filter system in which the melted paraffin is withdrawn from the spa container by way of a suction tube, the paraffin is filtered by the filter system, and is returned back to the spa container, all while remaining in the molten state.
The melted paraffin filtering system includes a portable housing having a replaceable filter in series with a pump for pumping the melted paraffin. The filter is connected at an input to the filtering system. The output of the paraffin pump returns the hot filtered paraffin, via a plastic discharge tube, to either the spa container or a separate container. The filtering system includes a heater and control system for elevating the temperature of the various components of the filter system to melt the residual paraffin contained therein, before the system can be placed into operation. The control system monitors the temperature of the filtering system to prepare it for operation, and does not allow the pump to be operated until the paraffin contained therein becomes liquefied. Once the filtering system has reached its operating temperature, the control system allows the operator to place the pump into operation. Moreover, the control system monitors the temperature of the system and controls both the heater and a fan to assure that operating temperature remains substantially constant. Once the filter system has been made operational, the temperature of the melted paraffin withdrawn from the spa is generally sufficient to maintain the operating temperature of the filter system. In this operating mode, the heaters are generally inactive, and a fan is operated to cool the paraffin pump.
The filter system is constructed as a double wall housing having an upper chamber and a lower chamber. The lower chamber houses the fan, pump and other components. The upper chamber houses a replaceable filter to which the suction tube is connected, and the stub end of a pipe to which the discharge tube is connected. A lid or cover can be placed on the housing to provide thermal insulation during a heating mode so that the residual paraffin in the pumping components can be quickly melted.
In one mode of operation, the suction tube is moved about the molten paraffin in the spa container to transfer the paraffin and any suspended or settled particles through the filter of the filter system. The pump in the filter system pulls the molten paraffin and any particulate contaminants through the suction tube, through the filter, and discharges filtered paraffin back to the paraffin spa container via an outlet discharge tube. After several filter operations, the filter can be replaced should it become clogged with filtered particulate matter.
In another embodiment, the filter system draws the contaminated paraffin from the spa container, through a particulate filter, and into a separate transfer container, which may or may not be heated. When all the filtered paraffin has been transferred to the transfer container, the particulate filter is replaced with a bacteria filter. The filter system is again activated, whereupon the paraffin is drawn from the transfer container by the filter system, through the bacteria filter, and discharged into the paraffin spa container. In this method of operation, both particulate matter and bacteria are removed from the melted paraffin and regenerated for reuse in the paraffin spa.